Switched on Pop - All I Want for Xmas is a Year in Review Episode

Episode Date: December 14, 2017

Charlie and Nate breakdown Mariah Carey's classic "All I Want for Christmas is You" and revisit their favorite tracks of 2017. Sleigh bells abound. Featuring • Mariah Carey - All I Want For Christma...s • Laura Marling - Semper Femina • Lorde - Melodrama • Khalid - Location • Dua Lipa - New Rules • Logic - Everybody / 1-800-273-8255 • Childish Gambino - Redbone • Sampha - (No One Knows Me) Like the piano in my mothers house • Father John Misty - Pure Comedy • Jay-Z: 4:44 • Perfume Genius - No Shape • Aimee Mann - Mental Illness And more... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Starting point is 00:00:32 It's free for iOS users. Welcome to Switch on Pop. I'm musicologist Nate Sloan. And I have a songwriter Charlie Harding. Charlie, there are some things in this world that we can set our clocks to, right? The sun rises and sets. The tides, ebb and flow. Stars are born and die and fiery novas.
Starting point is 00:00:56 And there's one other event in the universe that, occurs with inexorable power. And that is that every December, Mariah Carey's All I Want for Christmas is You will be inescapable. Oh, it's such good news. I thought you were going to say daylight savings because Mariah Carey is a lot more exciting.
Starting point is 00:01:30 Today, we are going to explore all I want for Christmas is you. I could not be more excited. It is that time of year, and this is one of the most requested songs for us to cover on the show. It's going to be great. And then in the second half, we are each bringing our standout tracks of 2017 to the table. So stick around.
Starting point is 00:01:58 Before we take this deep dive, Charles, I want to ask you, what do you think of this song? All I want for Christmas is you. It's a total jam. You're pro. Oh, absolutely. It's incredibly catchy. I love getting to hear each year. She sings some impeccably high notes.
Starting point is 00:02:13 And it's an absolute classic. I'm glad you feel that way. I do, but I had to take some time to come to your euphoric vision of this song. I did not like this song, and it all changed for me once I performed it. You know, I do this holiday charity concert in Brooklyn every year, the music director. Yes. And so I had to write an arrangement and perform this song, and once I did that, then I gained this new appreciation for the track, for the way it's so beautifully constructed. Well, I'm sorry your ears weren't as great as mine and appreciating its beauty, but I am intrigued to find out what you've learned along your path. Well, and for those out there who don't love it now, you might by the time we're done.
Starting point is 00:02:56 Okay, here we go. Okay. Ready, Charles? Seat belt on. So there's three things I want to focus on in this song, and I'll mark them each with the tinkling of a sleigh bell. So you're aware of the divisions, all right? Good, good. Okay, the first thing that hooks us in is the suspense of this.
Starting point is 00:03:13 song. Now, that might not be an adjective that would immediately come to mind when you're thinking of all I want for Christmas is you. No. But in the intro of this song, we as listeners are kept in rapt suspense. This intro just hooks us in and once we're done, we're never getting it out of our head again. And it's a long intro. It's 50 seconds long. So we can't listen to the whole thing. Yeah. But here's a taste of the beginning of all I want for Christmas is you. Oh, is that Glockenshiel? Glockenshiel, Charlie. No, no, no, no, no, no, it's, um, you got it.
Starting point is 00:03:58 Tubular bells. Well, yes, the Glockenshiel's mature, older, cousin. Minor four chord. Wow, I've never appreciated that. so deeply, especially the final ridiculous drum fill. And why is that drum fill such a big payoff trial? It's because of that suspense we feel throughout the intro. Okay, so first let's focus on the lyrics.
Starting point is 00:04:48 What's the very first lyric of this song? I don't want a lot for Christmas. And the second. There is just one thing I need. Okay, so there's the setup, right? There's the suspense. Oh, that's a good set. She doesn't tell us after that.
Starting point is 00:05:04 No. She goes on to tell us other things she doesn't. need. Presents. She doesn't care about presents. She's got a wish. She's got a wish. What is that wish?
Starting point is 00:05:12 And then it's not till the very end of this introduction that we learn. All I want for Christmas is pause. And then finally we discover what it is. You. She wants you. I mean, of course, she tells us that in the title of the song. But, you know, she gives way the punchline. So from the beginning of this intro to the end, we are in.
Starting point is 00:05:37 lyrical suspense. What does Mariah Carey want for Christmas? That is our burning question. And we are only given the answer at the very end of the intro. And then that drumfield takes us into this raucous holiday party time. And at that point, we are hooked.
Starting point is 00:05:54 Okay. But that's not enough. Why this intro is so effective is because that lyrical suspense is mirrored in the chords that Mariah Carey uses. Yeah, they're sort of like big. lush open orchestral elements strings tubular bells and a really loose sense of time yes and if we look at the harmonies
Starting point is 00:06:19 under each of these lyrics they are taking us through their own journey of suspense because at the very beginning of the song we get the home chord the main key that we're in which is g major But it's not until the very end of the intro that we're going to get back to that G major chord. Even though the chords are constantly changing, we're not going to return to that home key, that sense of our song center, till the very end of the intro. Oh, okay. As the lyrics are kind of giving us the suspense, what does she want for Christmas? So do the chords give us that suspense, too.
Starting point is 00:06:57 We're up in the air until the reveal. All I want for Christmas is you. On that line, she goes back to the home key of G. Okay, so we can go through it together. We start on G. I don't want a lot for Christmas, and then we go up to B. There is just one thing I need up to C. I don't care about the presents up to E flat.
Starting point is 00:07:20 Underneath the Christmas tree. And we're rising with suspense. And at this point, you're like, okay, we could totally go back to G right now, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah. But we're not. We're going to D. and then from D I just want you for
Starting point is 00:07:36 my own to E minor more than you could ever know down to E flat down to D make my wish come true A minor all I want for Christmas and then
Starting point is 00:07:52 D is and at this point we are just like waiting please take me back take me back to that G and then finally you G we are home and ready to launch into the song proper. There's so many points in that chord progression where you think it's going to go back to where you started and instead she keeps dancing around it.
Starting point is 00:08:15 Suspense. Yes. And once you get that resolution, then you are in for the rest of the song. But that's not all. Second point, Slay Bell, please. The other reason this song is so successful is that it is right at home with holiday classics of your. I mean, this song has more in common with a classic like Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer, Winter Wonderland, than say one of Mariah's biggest hits,
Starting point is 00:08:45 Always Be My Baby, where you have a section that is a repeating chorus. All I want for Christmas is you, however, uses a much older song form that has a rather prosaic name that is simply called A-A-A-Raea. B-A where each of those letters refers to a section of the song. This is like old Sinatra-style songs. Oh, yeah. You might not think of Bing Crosby-Mari having much in common, but Der Binger would be very pleased by her use of the A-B-A form here.
Starting point is 00:09:25 You're very excited about this. Why don't you tell us what you're talking about? Well, check it out. This is how this form works, okay? We have the first A section, which starts, I don't want a lot for Christmas, and then ends with this now familiar refrain. All I want for Christmas is you.
Starting point is 00:09:39 Right. And then we get another one of these sections. It has the same exact music. Different lyrics. This time she starts, I won't ask for much this Christmas, but she ends on the same refrain. All I want for Christmas is you. I think this time around she throws an oh baby in there just for a little slight variation. A little variation. But so far we've had two sections that are virtually identical musically. Yes. So that's A and A. Now we get this new material, this contrast. section, the B section, the section that goes, all the lights are shining so brightly everywhere. Beautiful moment here, right? Kind of mixes it up, takes us to another place harmonically.
Starting point is 00:10:21 And then this bridge section builds back into one more statement of the original A section. So now she sings, I don't want a lot for Christmas, and then ends one more time on this now haunting refrain, one that we will never be able to get out of our synaptic pathways. All I want for Christmas is you. Finn, QED, we have arrived. A-A-A-B-A, very elegant, effective form, but one that we're not really used to hearing. It's only this time of year when we get these reduxes that we are exposed to this very antique song form. And I think as such, it gives us a nostalgia. It makes us feel warm and comfortable like we're sitting in front of a fireplace wearing our grandpa's old shoes. Rather than having the build to the hook, it's almost like you have the hook is played three
Starting point is 00:11:18 times with a break in the middle. Like the A section is the main material. And in that way, you're just kind of like a hook, hook, hook, hook, slight derivation, hook. Yes. And then like it grills that thesis, all I want for Christmas is you into your mind that much deeper. It's the whole point of the song. There's no ifs and or butts are about it. Okay, so that's the thing number two. What's the thing number three? And let's get a nice, vigorous sleigh bell for this one, because that's the subject of my third point. Sleigh bells. Sleigh bells. Okay. Let's just zero in on these sleigh bells for a second. We can hear them right between the intro and the first verse of this song. Let's have a listen. Let me ask a tangential
Starting point is 00:12:07 question. Why do sleigh bells sound like winter? Oh, okay. Now I see I've gotten your gears turning. Okay, so there's an obvious explanation, right? Let's get that out of the way. They're usually played during the holiday period, which in the Northern Hemisphere is winter. So for people in the Northern Hemisphere, they probably make the association. Yes, that was a little, in encyclopedia Brown, I was thinking more like they are on slays, which are something that are used in winter. Dude, have you ever been on a sleigh with a sleigh bell? No one ever has. No, no, I certainly haven't, though it's on my bucket list. They sound like ice. It sounds like shaking a bucket of ice.
Starting point is 00:12:46 Yes. Ooh, okay, I'm totally on your wavelength there, Charles. Yes, it has this kind of sparkly, shimmery sound. Yeah. Like ice, like snow, like twinkling snowflakes. Yeah, yeah. Right? Yeah.
Starting point is 00:13:01 So maybe we're attracted to that. And there's also something kind of evanescent about this. them, right? It's a sound that you hear as quickly as it disappears, just like the holidays. Oh, wow. Okay, I see where we're going with this. And then this song is so brilliant because they put these sleigh bells in this like world of twinkling sound. So we have the sleigh bells. And then you can hear they add a tambourine. Oh, yeah, yeah. I was going to say the sleigh bell is like the December version of the tambourine, which any pop producer knows to make a song really shimmer, throw in a shaker or a tambourine in the background, and then everybody's moving. It magically always works. I love it. I'm
Starting point is 00:13:48 never going to get that out of my mind. Slavelle is the December tambourine. Does that make the tambourine the August? Is that all you have to say about sleigh bells? Because I have something really important to say about the recording of these sleigh bells. What I have to say about sleighbills would fill a toome to rival infinite jest, but please tell me what you're thinking. Everybody knows that if you're going to write a Christmas track that you just put in sleigh bells in the background and then all of a sudden, ha ha, it's a Christmas song. This is not your average sleigh ball. I was listening to this. I've never listened to this thing. I've never listened to this with headphones and turn up the volume and really pay attention.
Starting point is 00:14:29 It's usually just like in the background at CVS. So I don't pay that much attention when the song is on. I should. These sleigh bells are like an orchestra of. sleigh bells. So first of all, I can't count how many of there are. There's got to be like 15 of these. People just shaking so many of them. More than that. There's a stereo image of sleigh bells. One sleighbell shakes in your
Starting point is 00:14:50 right ear, and then the next sleighbell shakes in your left ear. So you're really enveloped in these sleigh bells. It's going around you, circling your head. It's completely mad. No, that's... Ooh, no, no, no, no. I have a scoop for you, Charles. There's a scoop? That's the tambourine. Wait, what? It's
Starting point is 00:15:11 sleigh bell tambourine. It's sleigh bell tambourine. Oh, they're talking to each other. Yeah, no, no, no, but that's okay because I had to spend a long time to unpack that. You can hear the subtle differences. I'm impressed. How did you find this? I like to think so. I don't know.
Starting point is 00:15:26 Maybe someone out there has an even more educated opinion. Nevertheless, I think your comment still holds water, right? We are bombarded by slave else back and forth in every year throughout this song. Yeah. Now we're sailing above all I want for Christmas for a moment because is there, any other sound in our popular music world that is so specific and so seasonal. Like, as a thought experiment, can you write a summer pop smash that features the sleigh bell? I mean, if you told me that it was like on Thriller, I'd be so excited, but I really doubt it.
Starting point is 00:16:06 Let's make an experiment. Let's take Thriller and throw a sleigh bell over it. Let's take another song. What's the last song we did? Let's take Sorry Not Sorry by Demi Lovato. Throw Slavell on it. You shouldn't do this. Okay, one more.
Starting point is 00:16:44 Kendrick Lamar, Slavell. Yeah, yeah. That's a real sparkle to everything. Suddenly, each of those songs has become a Christmas song. My goodness, the awe-inspiring power of the Slavell. It has more musical, emotional force for us than the gnarliest synth. synthesizer, the most distorted guitar, the deepest bass drum, the sleigh bell is the most powerful instrument of them all. Okay, okay. Okay, so I think Charlie's getting a little tax. So let's take a
Starting point is 00:17:22 break and then we'll come back to talk more about sleigh bells for another 20 minutes. No. No, no. There's only one more thing I want to say about this song. Let's step back a minute because this song is now one of the top 15 best cell. singles of all time and Charlie I don't think that is going to change any time soon. I think what's crazy is that this song is just going to get more and more popular. And do you know why I think that? Why is that? Because in 2011, this song was re-recorded by Mariah Carey and Justin Beaver.
Starting point is 00:18:01 So now it has the Bieber bump and whether you like it or not, looking forward into the future, the song is always going to be with us. Oh, this is abysmal. I'm so disappointed. Why? Why? Tell me. Okay, so I think we've established that this song is effective in that it places itself in its form and in its sonic texture in a different era. And so, like, it fits in with classic holiday songs. And then they try to update it for a modern sound by throwing electronic kick drums on it and auto-tuning the crap.
Starting point is 00:18:40 out of Justin Bieber's voice. I don't know. I feel like Christmas holiday songs gain new life when they're updated, when the drifters cover white Christmas and turn into this indelible duop version. May you'll taste, may you taste be merry and bright. But I feel like really big holiday hits.
Starting point is 00:19:10 I think that's in many ways the whole point of this episode is that they stopped being classic at some point in the 60s. And then this is sort of like establishes itself as like a 50s, 60s sort of song. And new holiday hits that kind of happened for a year and then they go. This does have a tremendous staying power. So this song written in 1994 remains incredibly popular. It's one of the 15 best selling singles of all time.
Starting point is 00:19:41 This song is not going anywhere. So if you're like us, if you're into this song, you're very pleased. If you can't stand this song, I have bad news for you. Well, I'm happy. I'm pleased. But hopefully if you're one of those people, you like it a little bit more now, now that you know, the lyrical suspense and the ancient song form of ABA and the eternal mystery of the twinkling sleigh bell. And that's all I got, Charlie.
Starting point is 00:20:04 Are you ready for part two? What are we doing again? We are discussing our standout tracks from 2017. I can't wait. I've got some things that are going to surprise you. Things that might not have made it on the show and should have. All right, I can't wait. I'll see you there.
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Starting point is 00:21:49 That's this week on America Actually. Every Saturday in your audio and video feeds. Welcome back to Switch on Pop. Okay, Charlie, we both have been digging through the detritus of 2017, diving down through the muck to come back to the surface with pearls. And I am so curious to hear what your three standout tracks of 2017 are. And I'm very curious, especially if there's going to be any overlap. I have one possibility in mind that we haven't shared any of these with each other yet.
Starting point is 00:22:27 Okay. No, I have no idea what's on your list. Who goes first? Should we do a coin toss? I'll start. All right. Number three favorite song of this year would be a track that we didn't get to cover on our show. It is
Starting point is 00:22:42 Duo Lepa's song New Rules. Do you know this track? Oh yes, I do. I love this track. It's so narrative. It has a countdown. Any song which has a countdown just immediately. It just catches you, right?
Starting point is 00:23:07 Like, what number is she going to get to? Yeah, from Dick in a Box to Beyonce's countdown. Countdowns are a sure fireway to have a great song. The final countdown, which I don't think has a countdown in it. No. I don't think it does.
Starting point is 00:23:24 What a letdown. I really like that this song has a kind of idiosyncratic view of how to deal with a breakup. I feel like a lot of breakup songs are in this sort of like a category of like breakup anthem. Talk about Demo Lovato, sorry, not sorry. It's like, yo, I'm over this. I'm out of here. And the song New Rules is about a breakup and sort of plays with this idea of the challenge. and temptations that exist post a relationship, like what happens if we get together,
Starting point is 00:23:51 what would happen. It plays in this gray area in a really cool way. And beyond that, it just has an amazing sonic palette. So number three for me, new rules by Duolipa. Oh, Charles, I love it. Off to a strong start. Okay, for my first selection, I'm not going to give you a preamble. I'm just going to hit play. Oh, yeah. Absolutely. This is Lord's Greenlight. You're air drumming. It's okay. It's okay. It's okay. I'm not. I can't see you, but I know you're air drumming. I was air drumming. This is a song we've already covered in depth,
Starting point is 00:24:29 but I think it's just worth reiterating. What a powerful song this is, and it goes from the depths of the verse to the sort of cathartic excesses of the chorus. Every time I listen to this, it's a journey with such a payoff. These choruses just feel so liberating and expansive to me
Starting point is 00:24:50 that this song has become a constant soundtrack to my 2017. We had a lot of listeners write in with different interpretations of different lyrics, especially like her great white teeth and there are all sorts of really cool little essays that we got about this.
Starting point is 00:25:08 So I think other people are with us. Yeah, absolutely. I actually made a MVP choice of the year, which isn't my top pick of a song, but I feel like we need to point out that the MVP of 2017 is Jack Antonoff. Yes.
Starting point is 00:25:25 Because he wrote and produced significant parts of my three favorite albums from the year, which were Lord's album Melodrama. It's just extraordinary. Right. He was a major contributor to Taylor Swift's reputation.
Starting point is 00:25:43 And he also was the main producer and songwriter on St. Vincent's Mass Seduction. all three of what church had this year's amazing albums and he probably has like 18 other albums that he accomplished this year as well but big MVP toss up to Jack Antonoff. All right well Jack you'll be getting your trophy in the mail where we had some issues with the supplier they said something about the metal being
Starting point is 00:26:19 poisonous not meant for human anyway it's coming. Yeah. All right. I guess that goes to number two. Yeah? Number two. All right. My choice for number two is Khalid's location.
Starting point is 00:26:34 Right from the top of the song, I know that I love it. And I, for weeks, was trying to figure out how could we put this together for an episode Switched on Pop? And I just couldn't do it because it felt too rich. Part of it was that I didn't even have the language to describe. what was going on. We open up with some sort of arpeggiated string. It's not a guitar, it's not a harp.
Starting point is 00:27:02 I don't know what it is. Maybe some cool synth sound. I feel like we've entered into some sonic atmosphere. Send me your location, let's focus on communicating, because I just need a time and place to come through. There are these rising, kind of sounds in the sounds. all of these sound effects that build this palette of the song.
Starting point is 00:27:29 I feel like every time I listen to it, I'm transported by just the effects. And that's not like even getting to the beautiful melody, which every single refrain I want to sing along. It really is one of these tracks that just it defied my analytic mind. I'm sure someone has lots of brilliant things to say about it, but I just enjoyed it so thoroughly. Yeah, you turned me on to this song. I couldn't have said it better. There's something about the different timbers of the instruments, and then the sound of Khalid's voice is just,
Starting point is 00:28:04 words can't do it justice. But I understand. We both feel it, right? Yeah, we're on that wavelength. Absolutely. Okay. All right. Choice number two for Nate.
Starting point is 00:28:15 For my number two, I want to, again, I want to surprise you. I want you to take a listen, and I'm curious if you've heard this one. Okay. It's a little less familiar. Oh, no, where you sing, sing only for me. It is Laura Marling. I love Laura Marling. Yes, and this is her, this year's release, Semper Feminai.
Starting point is 00:28:41 It's a great title. And this is the track, Noel, which has been this quiet song that I keep coming back to. There's a wonderful ambiguity in that. the lyrics that keeps me constantly trying to decipher this song. At the same time as my left brain is rampantly trying to dissect it. My right brain is just playing in the beautiful open fields of this finger-picked guitar melody, which is so elegant and beautiful. So for me, the song just like hits these two marks at once.
Starting point is 00:29:24 It's got this gorgeous. musical accompaniment and these lyrics about friendship and love and femininity and I don't know that just I feel like I'll be processing for years to come beautiful I don't like that you're keeping your secret I'm just going to give my songs away my top pick is I chose three things you are shameless Wow. I can't decide. No, no, no, no. I've made a decision. My top pick is Logics, two singles, both everybody and his newer single, 1-800-273-8-255. When I first heard I'm talking about they think they know it I've been praying for somebody
Starting point is 00:30:21 To say me no one's heroic And my life don't even matter I know it I know it I know I'm hurting deep down But can't show it When I never had a play When I first heard Logic's new album Was just overwhelmed
Starting point is 00:30:32 I feel like he has This incredible narrative quality With a lot of truth speaking About things that don't get discussed In mainstream media and pop music music. They're sort of taboo, right, like talking about racial justice as a pop artist and especially talking about depression. His songs both address these issues and also provide a beautiful
Starting point is 00:31:03 sense of hope. They're really joyful. So I've just been really taken by logic this year. I love that you ended with these two logic tracks. And I think there's such great examples of, you know, if someone says, oh, pop music, that's all just. just escapist fluff. That's all just, you know, the opiate for the masses. You can go, no, no, no, listen to these songs. These are serious issues that people are dealing with and dealing with through this music. So I love that you ended on that.
Starting point is 00:31:33 And I maybe was following a similar impulse because this is my last pick. I'm going to surprise you one more time. Uh, yeah. This is Jay-Z's new album. This is off of 444. Yes. And this is the song. smile. I could have picked a number of tracks from this record, but I'm especially susceptible.
Starting point is 00:31:57 But you happen to pick the one that has a Stevie Wonder sample on it? Yeah, I mean that that was, there was just, there was no way around it. We've got a beautiful sample of the first track off Stevie Wonder's album songs in the Key of Life. And then right in the first verse of this song comes a stanza of lyrics that I was not prepared for when I was listening to this album for the first time. Had to pretend so long as she's a despian Had to hide in the closet Soci-Maticate Society's shame and the pain
Starting point is 00:32:29 Was too much to take Cry tears of joy when you fell in love Don't matter to me if it's a him or her I just want to see you smile wall A hey Maria Etternet baby Let her meet bad times This is such a beautiful moment About Jay-Z singing about his mother
Starting point is 00:32:44 And her experience Having to be closeted for the majority of her life And his experience of joy in her later love Like, it's just, it's a gorgeous tribute to the most important person in his life. Yeah, and it's so unexpected to encounter this in a Jay-Z song. Yeah. And then if that's not enough, though, I think there's an even more stunning moment, which is at the very end of the song.
Starting point is 00:33:08 The outro of the song is actually a recording of his mother, Gloria Carter, herself, reciting a poem that she wrote about the experience of coming out. Right. Living in the shadow, can you imagine what kind of life? it is to live? In the shadows people see you as happy and free because that's what you want them to see. Living two lives happy but not free. You live in the shadows for fear of someone hurting your family or the person you love. The world is changing and they say it's time to be free, but you live with the fear of just being me. Living in the shadow feels like the safe place to be.
Starting point is 00:33:49 No harm for them, no harm for me. But life is short and it's time to be free. Love who you love because life isn't guaranteed. Smile. I cried the first time I heard this. I've cried many times I've listened to this. Ditto. Ditto.
Starting point is 00:34:05 I still do. It's so powerful. Even though I know it's coming now, it's just the force of it from the first time I heard it, I think, has remained with me. I think I don't really have much else to say. I just think it's one of the most staggeringly beautiful tracks. of the year. I didn't realize that she had written that poem. It's so powerful that I had assumed that it was some timeless thing that had just been around forever. No. No, as far as I understand, that's from her own
Starting point is 00:34:29 notebook. Yeah. That's beautiful. I lied to you. I have a number zero pick. Oh, you, I'm never going to play cards with you because you are a cheater. I'm a cheat. Well, I think you'll be on board with this too. All right. Hit me. I think my real favorite song of the year, really one of my favorite albums was Childish Gambino's whole album and the single Red Bone, which was just another track of like, wow, how do I even approach this for our show? And perhaps I was immediately grabbed by it for the same reason that you first liked the Jay-Z track, which was some amazing throwback to some things that I loved from the 70s. And you listen to Childish Gambino's track and you're like, oh, okay, you were listening to Funkadelic, listen to some mothership. And I was really just pleased
Starting point is 00:35:16 to hear a beautiful homage to that style, a original lyrical voice, really powerful message, and something which just didn't sit in with the rest of the pop charts, and yet was this major success. I was just really pleased to hear a diversity of sounds on the pop radio. I think Childish Gambino brought that for us this year. Definitely. I'm really pleased with a lot of the picks that you chose
Starting point is 00:36:06 because I actually, like, made this other list of the things that actually moved me the most this year. And I think that for my picks, I really stuck to things that had made the biggest splash in popular culture. Because there were a ton of things that really moved me this year that maybe we wouldn't traditionally put on the show. But now I'm thinking, like, we should just put this stuff on the show. Like, I just got to share it. Like, I loved Samfah's album, especially the single, no one knows me, like the piano on my mother's house. which is just gorgeous. And I'd been listening to him since,
Starting point is 00:36:40 I guess, his voice was all over, Subtrak's debut album in 2011. Right, right. He's just brilliant. No one knows me like the piano in my mother's home. I would show me I had something. Some people call a soul. I loved Father John Misty's pure comedy.
Starting point is 00:37:13 It was so existential that I couldn't listen to it more than once because it just made me feel really tragic about the world, but it was very effective in that way. The comedy of man starts like this. Our brains are way too big for our mother's in so nature she devised this altar. turn it till we emerge how formed and hope whoever greets us on the other end to fill us in Jay-Z's album was another one which was which was on my list of just things that that was probably the thing I listened to more than anything this year was probably Jay Z's album and then I loved Amy Mann's album she had this great album called mental illness Gotta keep it together And I really liked
Starting point is 00:38:30 Perfume Genius The album No Shape There's just so much good music That happened beyond the immediate pop charts And I don't know out about you But I think I'm excited to bring some A little bit more of that
Starting point is 00:38:50 Into the show next year I love it I'm totally on board Charles Beautiful thing Was there anything else that moved you this year That was something you wouldn't have brought in To be perfectly honest The only other thing I've been listening to this year
Starting point is 00:39:00 Is Baroque Orcastral sweets from the early 18th century. So, what's old as new? You know, if you're interested, the Academy of Ancient Music recordings of Handel's Concerto Grosy, Opus 6 are just fantastic. And they will do you right any year,
Starting point is 00:39:21 2017, 2018, 2019. Hot jam, like he's using one of those hot 808 and like some like sizzly trap hats. And no, no. All right, I'll give it a try. This episode of Switched on Pop was pretty. Produced by Professor Nate Sloan. This episode was edited by Alex Kaplanman and Rose Reed from Arc, a full-service creative podcast agency.
Starting point is 00:39:43 You can learn more at arcagency.co. That's arc agency, ARC.co. We were mixed and engineered by the excellent Bill Lance, designed by Luke Harris and intern Olivia Wood. And we are happy to announce that Switched-on-Pop is now available on Spotify. To find us there, simply search for Switched on Pog. So what is this arrangement thing that you're doing for this Brooklyn show? This is the Dave Harrington and Friends annual holiday concert.
Starting point is 00:40:14 All proceeds go to the Harlem School of the Arts, where Dave Harrington, the organizer of the concert and myself went when we were in high school. So it's a pretty awesome thing. We have Nick Murphy, aka Czech Faker, Hamilton Lighthouser, great musicians. It's going to be really fun. Wow, what a trip. I'm jealous. We are taking a holiday break, but we will be back with you in the new year for more pop deep dives.
Starting point is 00:40:42 Enjoy your break. Until then, thanks for listening. Thanks for listening. Attention Spotify. Has arrived on the new Good Girl Jasmine Absolute of Carolina Herrera. A fragrance intense with carathe gourmet and addictive. Imagine a jasmine emvolventy, caramelized and tonka toasted. A combination that seduce from the first instant and a beaweller.
Starting point is 00:41:06 Good Girl Jasmine Absurd. hypnotic irresistible. Discover it, and let's get involver for susentia.

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